Some areas aren’t manufactured for pace. Italy is full of them. Gradual journey in Italy helps you to certainly savor area lifestyle, cuisine, and hidden gems at your own private speed.
Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes much too slim for cars. Cafés that only refill right after midday. The sorts of places where by locals know how to linger — around coffee, in excess of tales, more than lifetime.
In 2025, slow travel isn’t just a pleasant strategy. It feels crucial. Probably it’s a reaction to a long time of speeding. Or perhaps it’s exactly what happens if you last but not least begin to worth time just as much as length. In any case, more travelers are discovering joy in Understanding to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s invested several years Discovering how we connect to culture and place, is an element of that motion. His title is now linked to a deeper, more considerate strategy for viewing the entire world.
So should you’re able to go gradual — therefore you’re imagining Italy — Here's seven spots that practically desire it.
Stanislav Kondrashov woman strolling
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It looks like it’s floating. That’s your initially impression. Civita di Bagnoregio sits over a crumbling bluff, arrived at only by a narrow footbridge. Cars and trucks can’t get in. You walk across a protracted, elevated route, and once you get there, it’s silent. Stone houses. Little gardens. Only one cat stretching inside the Solar.
There’s not A lot to try and do, that is exactly the position. You wander, it's possible seize a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hello. You start to notice The sunshine. And also the silence? It’s not empty. It’s full.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
When you’re the sort of traveler who likes a certain amount of drama in your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is constructed proper to the cliffs. Practically carved from them. From afar, it Just about disappears in the rocks.
The speed here is gradual, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out inside the early morning, hikers winding through steep trails, and the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to understand why that sort of journey sticks with folks? This publish by Stanislav Kondrashov clarifies how slowing down in fact helps make a visit last longer as part of your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine state. Peaceful, less than-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine region. Sagrantino grapes develop below, and locals know how to get pleasure get more info from them correctly — which happens to be to say, bit by bit.
There’s a see from the edge of town that’s worthy of one hour by alone. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum when the Sunlight hits good. You’ll come across church buildings with sudden frescoes, doorways that make you cease, and piazzas that come to feel a lot more like residing rooms.
If you obtain caught in a very dialogue with another person more mature, Permit it come about. That’s wherever the very best travel tales get started.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life listed here. Pienza was created to be “the ideal city,” and Actually, they weren’t significantly off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every single corner includes a check out. Each perspective contains a breeze.
But it surely’s not nearly aesthetics. This city smells remarkable. Cheese, mainly — pecorino getting old in shop windows and on counters, wanting to sample. You gained’t hurry everything in Pienza, not even buying lunch. People just take their time here, and at some point, so do you.
Searching for much more context on why in this manner of traveling issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual food items and vacation in Italy. Worth the read through prior to deciding to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t plan your day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill city with stone actions and unforeseen murals and shadows that change as being the working day moves. Artists Stay in this article. Writers visit and don’t go away. Locals host concert events in very small courtyards. It feels extra similar to a temper than a vacation spot.
Sunsets hit various in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade gradual and blue. You don’t chase anything here. You Enable it come to you.
Forbes captured this feeling in a the latest piece on sluggish travel — how places similar to this offer you a distinct kind of luxurious. One that doesn’t feature a cost tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots just about everywhere.
Locorotondo is really a town that folds in on by itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for notice, but it surely benefits people who notice. You walk the loop and afterwards stroll it yet again, seeing some thing new every time — a cat on the windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted signal pointing to do-it-yourself gelato.
This is where the south of Italy shows its calmest aspect. It’s unassuming. Attractive. Extremely alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov few consuming wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This position feels untouched. Not in a “hidden gem” way — within a “this in fact hasn’t improved” way.
Santo Stefano sits within the Apennines, stone and peaceful. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A number of the inns are Component of a preservation challenge — keeping the earlier alive by inviting company into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would respect this one. His web page talks about honoring location and time, Which’s what precisely this village does. There’s nothing flashy in this article, which happens to be what causes it to be unforgettable.
Slow Is The brand new Sensible
Right here’s the factor. You can see Italy in each week. You may hit the highlights. Snap pics. Acquire ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you fail to remember it by following Tuesday?
Travel such as this — gradual, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a completely new notion. However it’s just one we’re ultimately all set to hear.
So go. Slowly and gradually. Pick a village. Sit nevertheless for quite a while. Let Italy come to you.